Nottingham Forest set to replace Crystal Palace in Europa League after Lyon win appeal against relegation – but there could still be another twist.
Nottingham Forest are currently likely to replace Crystal Palace in the Europa League after Lyon won their appeal against relegation from Ligue 1.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Following the Eagles’ dramatic FA Cup final victory over Manchester City in 2025, multi-club ownership confusion has arisen. The victory at Wembley Stadium should have won them a spot in the Europa League for next season.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
John Textor did, however, own shares in Palace and Lyon at the time, with both clubs qualifying for the Europa League. That situation violated UEFA regulations, and Textor and Palace chairman Steve Parish travelled to Nyon to meet with the governing body of European football.
DID YOU KNOW?
Textor has now sold his investment in the Eagles to American billionaire Woody Johnson, who owns the New York Jets NFL franchise, and resigned from Lyon’s board. However, such decisions were made after the March 1 deadline established by UEFA to eliminate any potential conflicts of interest.
TELL ME MORE
Palace appeared to have been granted a reprieve when Lyon was demoted from the French first division due to a financial issue, but they successfully appealed the verdict and will return to the Europa League in 2025-26.
Palace will miss out on the Europa League when the list of participants is completed, as they finished lower than Lyon in their respective domestic divisions (12th in the Premier League), whereas Forest will be promoted from the Conference League.
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WHAT NEXT?
There may, however, be another twist in the story. UEFA is poised to rule on what will happen to Palace, with a challenge to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) due to be filed if they are ousted from the Europa League, which might result in their reinstatement.
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